We woke up early to catch our plane for the trip to Everest. It was a short drive to the airport where we picked up our tickets and hoped for a window seat. Being from Dubai we are used to things not happening as planned so we were not overly bothered when we had to wait with no indication of how late the flight would leave. Eventually we were bussed out to the tarmac where it was obvious we were getting a window seat – everyone was! 
Ah, finally nestled safely back in the walls of Dwarika’s and time to get settled into our room before dinner. The poolside dinner buffet consisted of many local favourites like Samaya Bajee, marinated wild boar, pork and beans, assorted sausages and cottage cheese. They had a live cooking momo station, steamed chicken & vegetables dumplings and Nepali fried tortillas. Cheers!
On our way back to the hotel we saw various modes of transportation, bicycles, motorbikes, tuk-tuks and we didn’t need to be almost squashed by this big truck to be thankful we arranged travel insurance for this trip! The roads were chaotic! I snapped this picture of the truck the second before our driver put on the gas and drove us out of its path.
Back onto the narrow, chaotic streets dodging pedestrians, motorcycles etc. to see Swayambhunath. This place is dubbed the monkey temple and for good reason - there were monkeys everywhere you looked! The place was very colourful for all of the wish flags that were strewn over everything in hopes the thrower’s wishes would come true.
It was a fairly quick journey on the Kathmandu roads to our hotel and upon entering the walls of Dwarikas’ calm courtyard the sounds of the street and bustling speed of the cars disappeared. The warm scent of citronella, which I don’t usually enjoy and smiling staff welcomed us with a gentle “Namaste” and we were immediately made comfortable.
The view from the plane during our flight into Nepal was incredible! Could it be possible that coming from the desert made the green lush mountains even more awe-inspiring? We have arrived! Ahhh, immediate relief from the Dubai stress. We were greeted with a lei of flowers and ushered into a tiny Nepal-style car.
Our Air Arabia credit was about to expire so Barry and I did some quick trip planning for the upcoming Ascension Day long weekend. Jordan was booked but there were seats for Kathmandu so it was decided, Nepal here we come. We completed the booking on Thursday and travelled on Friday morning. Dubai to Nepal via the blue cloud-filled sky and Air Arabia was better than expected.
A great visit with family and friends in Toronto. Thank you for everyone who made it downtown to meet us for dinner and a special thanks to Mike for organising the group dinner! We didn't know at the time that it was going to double as our reception :-) Tea anyone?
We always enjoy spending the summer in the great outdoors at the ranch. Our trip coincided with Busy Days again this year, which is always a highlight. The kids are getting SO big!
